The Epic of Gilgamesh and
Ancient Mesopotamia
The history and culture behind the world’s oldest
recorded story – Epic of Gilgamesh
Mesopotamia– Geography (circa 4000 BC )
• Mesopotamia means “the
land between the rivers.”
• It is located in an
agriculturally rich region
between the Tigris and
Euphrates rivers (also known
as the “Fertile Crescent” or
“cradle of civilizations”.
• It was located in the region
known today as Iraq as well as
parts of Iran.
Mesopotamia was a wide plain open for invasion
Mesopotamia’s Ruling Societies
from 5000 BCE – 600 BCE
Sumeria was the first civilization in the
region.
Later, the Akkadians, Babylonians,
Hittites, Assyrians, and Chaldeans take
over their cities and adopt their culture.
They all adapt their own version of the
Epic of Gilgamesh.
Sumerians (5000-2100 BC)
The Sumerians were the first group of people
known to have dominated this region
____________________________________
1. Economy
Sumerians made their living by growing
crops and raising livestock. They were also
known as successful merchants and traders
throughout the Persian Gulf region.
Sumerians (5000-2100 BC)
2. Government and Society
Sumerians lived in city-states. These cities were
walled (fortified) for protection and surrounded
by vast, open land.
The largest city-states were Ur, Uruk, and
Lagash. The Sumerians never developed a
central, unifying government between the three,
leaving them vulnerable to attack.
Sumerian society developed a three-level class
system (nobles, middle class, peasants).
Sumerian City States
City of Uruk
setting for
Gilgamesh
Sumerians (5000-2100 BC)
3. Religious Beliefs
- The Sumerians (and later the
Babylonian people) worshipped a
pantheon of gods and goddesses.
- Regardless of one’s actions in life, they
did not believe in life after death. They
believed that after one dies there is only
emptiness.
Anu – father of gods and god
of the sky (similar to Zeus)
Enlil – god of the air
Utu – sun god;
lord of truth and justice
Sumerians (5000-2100 BC)
4. Cultural Achievements
Sophisticated technology – terraced temples
(ziggurats), wheeled vehicles, sail boats,
animal-drawn plows.
Developments in math and science – A precise
12 month calendar, the concept of zero,
“Pythagorean theorem”
Sumerians (5000-2100 BC)
4. Cultural Achievements (cont.)
World’s first writing system – cuneiform.
Formed by reed markings on wet clay tablets.
The Epic of Gilgamesh, the first work of fiction
ever recorded, was etched on stone tablets in
cuneiform.
Extra Credit
opportunity!
Use the internet to
learn to write your
name in cuneiform.
Bring a neat copy in to
class tomorrow -
History of Epic of Gilgamesh
• While there is no evidence that the events in
the epic actually happened, there was a
Gilgamesh who ruled the Sumerian dynasty of
Uruk in 2,700 BCE
• The Epic of Gilgamesh, the first work of fiction
ever recorded, was etched on over 40,000 clay
tablets in cuneiform in 2,000 BCE.
History of Epic of Gilgamesh
The legend itself was adapted by a number of
different cultures following the decline of the
Sumerian empire.
We can still learn much about Sumerian culture
and values through the story of Gilgamesh –
the world’s first epic hero.
Akkadians (2100 - 2000 BC)
The Akkadian people easily take over
Sumerian culture – perhaps because of
Sumer’s lack of a unified government.
However, Sumerian culture is maintained through these shifts in power.
Under their king, Sargon, the
Akkadians produce a version of
Gilgamesh.
Hittites (2000 - 1700 BC)
YEP, they had a version of Gilgamesh too!
Babylonians (1700-700 BC)
There was also a version from the Old
Babylonian empire under Hammurabi.
The Babylonians recognized the value of
Sumerian culture and adopted much of it as
their own.
Sumerian became a literary
language (much like Latin
today).
Babylonians (1700-700 BC)
Code of Hammurabi
Babylonians (1700-700 BC)
Hanging Gardens of Nebuchadnezzar
Babylonians (1700-700 BC)
King Nimrod’s
Tower of Babel
Assyrians (700-600 BC)
In first millennium – under the Assyrian
empire – the Epic of Gilgamesh took on its
final written form.
The final translation was added to the King’s
library at Nineveh.
After the destruction of Nineveh by the
Chaldeans in 612 BCE, the epic was lost
until the library was excavated in 1872 CE.
Story of Gilgamesh
The Epic of Gilgamesh is the story of King
Gilgamesh of Uruk. Gilgamesh is a ruthless
and oppressive leader, and the gods punish his
prideful behavior by killing his best friend
(Enkidu). Horrified by Enkidu’s death and the
prospect of his own demise, Gilgamesh
undertakes a quest for immortality which brings
him to the home of Utnapishtim, a the only
mortal saved from the Great Flood and granted
immortality. There he finds the truth about life
and death.
Importance of Gilgamesh
Earliest known literary work.
Contains an account of the Great Flood and the
story of a virtuous man named Utnapishtim who
survived (likely the source for the biblical story
of Noah)
Expresses values of ancient civilization – such as
the belief in divine retribution for transgressions
such as violence, pride, the oppression of
others, and the destruction of the natural world.
Importance of Gilgamesh
Gilgamesh serves as an early model of the
archetypal hero.
Studied by Joseph Campbell as a primary
example of the monomyth (or hero’s journey
story).
Large number of parallels to The Odyssey and
other Greek epics